Term Two is here, which means Winter sports! Our major codes, netball, hockey, and football, have begun their team training, with their season kick-off this week.

This is a reminder to our parents/caregivers to keep an eye on our Enrolmy Page if your daughter participates in Winter Sports. If you want to learn more about what sports are being offered this term, visit the sports section of the school website and read through our Co-Curricular Sports Guide. This is your one-stop shop for sports, fees, uniform requirements, and season dates.

Celebrating Sports@Dio

Below are some awesome end-of-term one sporting updates from various individuals, teams, and students who showcased their talents throughout the school holidays.

Cricket

Before Term 1 ended, our cricketers attended their end-of-season Waikato Secondary School 2023/24 Annual Prize-giving. The team was awarded a trophy for winning the Secondary Girls' Competition in the Term 4 and Term 1 seasons. 

Equestrian

Under beautiful blue skies on 5 May, five riders had a great day competing at the North Island Secondary Schools' Dressage Championships at St Peter’s School, Cambridge.

Zara Cowen and her horse Astro Max rode two beautiful tests, earning them 1st place in the 1A and 1B classes. Zoe Garland, riding her new horse, Nightshift, delivered a very tidy 1B test, earning her 3rd place.

Our Waikato Dio Amber Sunset team, which consists of Zara Cowen, Olivia Stone, and Madison Tierney, won 2nd place overall across all teams with their combined scores.

Our riders and horses looked fabulous and represented the school with class. Meeting new riders Maia Black and Olivia Stone was great, and we look forward to the next competition.

Football

The 2024 season kicked off with our 1st XI team playing at the College Day Premier Tournament on 4 May at St Peter’s, Cambridge. The tournament brought together schools from all around Waikato, and with the many games in one day, not to mention the stunning weather, it was a great way to start the season.

Our pool involved local teams Cambridge High School, St Paul’s Collegiate, and Rototuna High School. After pool play and close games, we finished at the top of our pool, putting us in the final against Hillcrest High. It was an exciting game, and we fought until the end. Unfortunately, we missed the win, with the final score being 2-3. Thank you to Gina Fitchett for filling in as coach on this day.

Futsal

Five teams across the junior and senior grades competed in the Term 1 Waikato High School competitions. All teams challenged themselves and were well supported by our amazing coaches. We experienced some success on the leaderboard with our Senior A team, who competed in the Waikato Senior High School Girls' League - Division 1 and placed 2nd (by one point difference), and our Junior A, who competed in the Waikato Junior High School Girls' League - Division 1 alongside our Junior Blue team and placed 2nd by one point after going to penalties in the final.

Well done to all players, and thank you to our team managers and, of course, coaches Brad Duggan (Senior A and Senior Development), Derek Tieku (Junior A and Junior Blue), and Hayley Williams (Dio Red), Class of 2023 Dio Old Girl.

Hockey

With the Dio Hockey season underway, our 1st XI team participated in the annual Anzac Tournament, which was hosted by St Paul's Collegiate from 21 to 23 April. This year, for the very first time, Waikato Dio had games played on the brand new water turf as part of this Tournament. A total of 14 teams competed. Our players utilised this opportunity to brush off the cobwebs and have a hit before the season starts this week.

The 1st XI also went on a team-bonding weekend to Onemana to allow the students to create a plan for what they want to achieve throughout their season, not only as a team but also as individuals. The girls had a blast competing in beach and team-related activities. 

Karate

Last month, our Dio Head of Sport, Lilli Parres, competed in Sydney's Australian Open Karate Championships from 26 to 28 April. Lilli competed in the Senior UnderWeight, Senior Open, and Female Under 21 Kumite Event. In her U21 Kumite event, Lilli secured a silver medal. She awaits hearing whether her medal will get her selected for the Junior Worlds in Venice later this year. You go, Lilli!

Lacrosse

Congratulations to Year 13 student Nicole Hollands and Dio Old Girl Katie Hollands, who have been selected for the NZ U20 Lacrosse Women’s Team. In August, they will travel to Hong Kong to play in the 2024 U20 Women’s Lacrosse World Championship. Good luck, girls!

Netball

Netball Pathway Camp happened on 13 and 14 April, where seven teams came together for a bonding weekend. The teams involved were Premier, Premier Reserves, Premier Development, Junior Premier, 10A, 9A and 9B. We worked together in teams, sharing why we play netball, how we want the community to remember us, fun games, fitness sessions, shared kai and headed to watch our S&C coach Bex play in the SHNL team and topped it off by watching the Magic vs Mystics. It was a great weekend of bonding and getting to know each other.

After winning the 2023 Hamilton City Netball Premier B grade, our Premier Netball team earned an opportunity to vie for a spot in the Premier A grade competition. They played against Allied Premier, a team of experienced players and combinations. The result, 37-41, did not go in our favour, but the girls played some great netball, showing promise for the season. The night's highlight was seven players debuting for the Premier team: Olivia Wrathall, Isla Finlay, Isabella Hussey, Grace Farrelly, Lizzie Foy, Georgie Benseman, and Maclaine Stuart. Thank you to all of the supporters who showed up to cheer on our team!

Rowing

A big congratulations to Maclaine Stuart (Year 12), Georgia Trebilco (Year 12), Hannah Tomlin (Year 13) and Milan Nordstrom (Year 13), who were selected into the North Island U18 Rowing Squad that competed against their South Island counterparts, with North coming out on top for the first time in five years. This was raced during the holidays, 23-24 April, at Lake Karapiro. 

Congratulations to Isabel Melville (Year 13), who has also qualified for the U19 World Championships in the NZ Women's U19 Coxless Four. Our very own Director of Rowing, Alice Denyer, will be part of the coaching duo for this squad. The squad will compete at the 2024 U19 World Championship Regatta in St Catharines, Canada, from 21 to 25 August. Awesome stuff!

Swimming

Seven of our Dio swimmers competed at the 2024 New Zealand Age Group Swimming Championships held in Hawkes Bay from 15 to 19 April. For some, this was their first time competing at the event. The girls succeeded, achieved PBs, and enjoyed cheering on their team. A special mention to Sophie Hay, who was officially announced as part of the NZ Team for the World Junior Open Water Championships being held later this year!

Here are some of the outstanding results from across the week.

Gemma Hay (Year 9)

• 7th 1500m Freestyle
• 8th 200m Fly
• 8th 4 x 100m Medley Women - 15 & Under Relay

Alanna Rawson (Year 9)

• 1st 200m Fly
• 2nd 200m Freestyle
• 2nd 50m Fly
• 2nd 100m Fly
• 2nd 100m Freestyle
• 2nd 50m Backstroke
• 2nd 200m Backstroke
• 5th 50m Freestyle

Tessa Scott (Year 10)

• 1st 1500m Freestyle
• 3rd 800m Freestyle
• 5th 400m Freestyle
• 6th 200m Freestyle
• 9th 4 x 100m Medley Women - 15 & Under Relay

Isabelle Blackmore (Year 11)

• 9th 4 x 50m Freestyle Mixed - 15 & Under Relay
• 9th 4 x 100m Medley Women - 15 & Under Relay
• 10th 4 x 50m Freestyle Women - 15 & Under Relay

Indiana Riley (Year 11)

• 8th 400m Freestyle
• 10th 400m IM
• 3rd 4 x 100m Freestyle Women - 15 & Under Relay
• 8th 4 x 100m Medley Women - 15 & Under Relay
• 6th 4 x 50m Freestyle Women - 15 & Under Relay

Ariella Riley (Year 11)

• 1st 400m IM
• 2nd 800m Freestyle
• 2nd 200m Freestyle
• 2nd 200m Fly
• 2nd 1500m Freestyle
• 4th 400m Freestyle
• 4th 200m IM
• 9th 200m Breaststroke
• 3rd 4 x 100m Freestyle Women - 15 & Under Relay
• 6th 4 x 50m Freestyle Women - 15 & Under Relay
• 8th 4 x 50m Medley Women - 16 & Over Relay
• 7th 4 x 100m Medley Women - 16 & Over Relay

Sophie Hay (Year 13)

• 2nd 1500m Freestyle
• 3rd 800m Freestyle
• 8th 400m Freestyle
• 9th 200m Freestyle
• 8th 4 x 50m Medley Women - 16 & Over Relay
• 7th 4 x 100m Medley Women - 16 & Over Relay

In other swimming news, Ariella Riley and Sophie Hay competed at the NZ Swimming Championships at the Hawkes Bay Regional Aquatics Centre on 9 April.

Both finished in the top 10 placings, returning with a bronze medal in their respective events.

• Sophie 1500 Freestyle
• Ariella 400 Individual Medley

Water Polo

To complete the Term 1 water polo season, our Senior A  team competed at the NZSS Div 2 Water Polo Championships held here in Hamilton from 13 to 16 April. The four-day tournament presented some challenging games, and the team experienced great teamwork, commitment, resilience, and heightened skill levels. Well done to all those involved, and we look forward to the junior season in Term 4.

Volleyball

A shout-out to some of our awesome Year 13 volleyball stars, Amy Thomas, Brooke Thomas, and Bethany Parry, who have been selected for the Waikato U19 Women's team to compete in the June NZ IPC Tournament in Wellington.